North American Butterflies and Moths List

The definitive website on wildbirds & nature

Butterflies of North America

Butterflies of Mississippi

Dotted Skipper (Hesperia attalus)

Dotted Skipper (Hesperia attalus [W. H. Edwards])

Wing span: 1 3/8 - 1 5/8 inches (3.5 - 4.2 cm).

Identification: Variable and rarely seen. Forewing is pointed,
particularly in the male. Male: Upperside is dull brownish orange
with wide dark borders; stigma on forewing has black felt.
Female: Upperside is dark brown with pale spots; underside is
green-brown to dull orange with or without small pale spots.

Life history: Males perch to watch for receptive females. Eggs
are deposited on or near the host. Caterpillars feed on grass
leaves and live in silken tubes at the base of grass clumps. They
overwinter in shelters that are partially buried.

Flight: Two broods from May-September with a longer flight period
in Florida.

Range: Atlantic seaboard from eastern Massachusetts (rarely)
south to peninsular Florida and the Gulf Coast. A separate
population occurs from central Kansas south to east-central
Texas. Strays to eastern Nebraska.

Conservation: Populations should be conserved wherever they are
found.

The Nature Conservancy Global Rank: G3 - Very rare or local
throughout its range or found locally in a restricted range (21
to 100 occurrences). (Threatened throughout its range).

Management needs: Care should be taken not to eliminate
populations by overuse of fire on small preserves.